Semi-retired Adventurer Lives Leisurely Chapter 34

Published at 15th of June 2021 06:24:39 AM

Chapter 34: Casino Part 1

It’s still bright outside, but the main streets of Flowtier began to empty out as the end of the day approached.

Cyril: “Oh〜〜〜... so it’s my first time in this area of town, but wo〜〜〜w, it’s like this huh.”

Henry: “.............hey, stop looking around so much.”

Cyril: “But everything’s so new to me.”’

Cyril let’s out some curious gasps as she glances all around her.

Well, yeah, for her, this would be new.

Stores that you typically don’t see in Main Street line-up this area - especially the businesses that cater to the late night crowds.

There are bars that have scantily clad women serving you alcohol, and that’s just the beginning. There are gambling facilities and brothels and love hotels. If you go to one of the back alley’s, there are stores selling goods that you would never see in the light of day, and you’ll see some “specialty” stores as well as special “pharmacies” as well.

Well, women who just turned adult-age should be weary while walking these streets so they don’t get snagged by bad men, but…..I guess that’s less of a concern around here in Flowtier.

But there are guys catcalling and hitting up any girls they see. If you just go by looks, Cyril is a cute girl.

But no one is approaching her in this situation. Of course not. She’s with a man already.

And of course, because of that, people are acknowledging that we are in “that” kind of a relationship.

Henry: “Cyril, c’mon. Let’s get to where we’re going.”

Cyril: “Okay〜〜〜 Oh! It’s my first time, so I need you to take the lead and teach me everything.”

Henry: “I’m not that great at this either.”

It’s still early so all the bars and taverns are empty, but the love hotels are happily welcoming all the young couples in heat.

I take a quick glance around, but I see a couple that’s around the same age as Cyril, and they try to secretly enter a love hotel together.

Cyril: “Oh!”

Cyril notices too, and takes a quick look at me, and then looks away quickly.

If you’re going to be embarrassed about it, stop looking around so much.

Henry: “C’mon. Stop snooping around, and let’s go.”

Cyril: “I”m not snooping〜〜〜”

Alright, alright. I respond to Cyril nonchalantly, and I try to remember the location of the store according to the map in my head as we round a corner.

The magecraft lights shine brightly on its store sign as it tries to attract a younger audience with a casual, fun look.

Cyril: “Ooooohhhhh... so this is a Casino.”

Henry: “Yup.”

The Flowtier approved legal gambling center, “Big Casino” was overflowing with an atmosphere of striking it rich.

<<<<>>>>

This all started yesterday as I was eating lunch at the Bear’s Keg Inn, and I said something out loud like, “Uhhhhhh...maybe I’ll go win some money or something today…”

I really have too little to do when we’re not out on adventures. I don’t feel like going solo adventuring every single time.

ーーーI know I was doing that before Gilverte.

ーーーbut no, I’m not living my life like that again.

Of course, there is a lot to do around here. I can read a random novel. I can go explore the town.

I was actually reading a guide book to the city when I thought, “Oh yeah, I could go to the casino.”

Flowtier has a tourist side to the city, and there are also all sorts of gambling arenas.

But the businesses are limited to places nearer to the red-light districts, and you wouldn’t see any close by the Bear’s Keg Inn.

I turned the page to the introduction to the City Casinos, I was thinking about going around some card tables and maybe even visit a brothel, but Cyril, who’s been coming around more frequently to the Bear’s Keg Inn for lunch, raised her hand.

Basically, her ask was, “I want to go! Take me with you please〜”

I guess she’s at a age when she’s curious about these kinds of things. So, I ended up having to take her along with me.

……..and yeah, there’s no way I can pop into a brothel now afterwards, so she did put a giant wrench in my final plans. And now that I think about it, the timing’s always been off, so I haven’t gone to one here yet.

Cyril: “Oh, Ooooohhhhhh. Even though it’s still a regular weekday, there’s so many people here.”

Henry: “Not that we can say anything since we’re here too.”

Cyril’s eyes sparkled as she gazed up on the bustling crowd in the Casino.

There are also adventurers we frequently see at the church. It’s normal to put in days to rest in between adventures, and of course, that means that some will have very little to do on their off days like me. Hence, that’s why there are those who hang around casinos during these times.

Well, it’s not a bad option as long as you are able to keep yourself under control.

Whether it’s fine dining, alcohol, smoking, gambling or women, for those who spend their days risking their lives every time they work, we need something to take the stres, pressure, and load off of us or we’ll snap or break down.

There are some who believe that adventuring itself is a way to recover from adventuring fatigue and are the reincarnation, embodiment, or even possessed by the Grandes god, but those idiots are rare and few.

Cyril: “So um….what do we do first?”

Henry: “Well, first we need to trade in our money for coins. All the games at the Casino use these coins, and after we’re done, we go back and trade in the coins for real money.”

And of course, the rate to exchange the coins are different from buying and selling. The exchange rates are one way to tell if you’re at a decent Casino or not.

And the good thing was that here, this Casino was catered to attract tourists, so they made sure to ensure a fair exchange rate to appease the public and city. But because of that, it’ll be harder to win big. These kinds of risk to reward rates differ by Casino as well.

I don’t feel like losing too big today so I exchange about 1,000 zeniths and Cyril…...is just getting 300. That’s about right for someone who’s gambling for the first time.

Cyril: “So what should we do first?”

Henry: “Well, let’s see… Cards are a little tricky because it depends on who you’re playing against….so why not try the roulette?”

Well, depending on the dealer’s skills, the dealer could manipulate the outcome some, so you have to outwit and outsmart them, but it’s still fun.

And it’s not a bad one to start with. There’s a lot of people who gather around, and it’s a nice energetic and noisy atmosphere, and just to enjoy the Casino feel, it’s a great place to start.

Cyril: “Ya〜y, okay, let’s go…...huh, oh!”

Cyril was about to dash forward when another customer walked by. She nearly bumped into him, and I had to grab her hand and stop her.

Henry: “Sorry, she can be clumsy at times.”

The other gentleman laughed it off and went on his way.

Henry: “I don’t mind you enjoying all of this, but pay attention to your surroundings.”

Cyril: “Okay, I’m sorry.”

Well, she just has to be careful going forward. It’s not a big deal.

So out of a few roulette tables, there was one with 2 seats open, so we traded half our coins into chips.

This is just so we can keep track of who’s money is on the table easier, so Cyril and I have different colored chips.

Henry: “Alrighty then…..I’m betting on Number 23 only.”

Cyril: “Since it’s my first time, I’ll just go with red or black. Mmmmm….I’ll go with...BLACK!”

And Cyril’s first roulette challenge began.

<<<<>>>>

Cyril: “Mmmmm…...RED!”

Cyril boldly bets a third of her chips on red.

The other customers place their bets, and the dealer begins to spin the roulette and releases the ball.

Watching the ball spin around, Cyril adds another third of her chips onto red.

Let’s see what happens….

Cyril: “YES~!”

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………..she got it.

Cyril throws a peace sign at me while she shows off her growing chip count.

And I ran out of chips about 20 minutes ago so I’m taking a break. I’m taking a sip of a non-alcoholic drink at the bar and watching Cyril play.

Henry: “Cyril’s got the hang of it. She’s doing well for a first-timer.”

She’s only betting red and black, so her gains are small, but now she’s doubled her chips. She told me that she could sort of tell where the ball was about to land. She’s added more chips when she feels like she’s about to win, and she refrains when she’s about to lose. She’s been right so far.

And with that last win, she decided to end it there and had the dealer exchange her chips back into the Casino coins.

Cyril: “How’s that, Henry?!”

Henry: “Yeah, great great. You did well〜"

Cyril: “He〜y, you don’t mean that at all!"

You think someone who lost out will be happy for someone who won?!

Cyril: “What do you want to do next?” Henry: “Oh〜, well, I thought we could do some poker, but all the seats are taken…why don’t we go to the back?”

Cyril: “The back?”

This floor of the Casino is mostly roulette’s and table games. In the back of the Casino, there is the Casino’s main venue.

Henry: “See, look at the Casino’s pamphlet right here.”

Cyril: “Let’s see…...a betting match….?”

Henry: “Yup, that’s it.”

They arrange a one on one fight, and you bet on who’s going to win.

There are some fighters the Casino arranged, but customers are allowed to participate if they want. You will have to use the weapons the Casino provides which have higher safety features embedded within its design. And you are prohibited from using magic power. If you win, you get a percentage of the money that was betted in your fight.

The Alvenia Kingdom is a country that emphasizes education, but it also has the Grandes Church as its national religion. As a result, there is also importance placed on martial arts and strength - the betting arena is a result of this culture.

Out of the 3 major countries, the *Republic of Salaise believes this to be a barbaric practice.

Cyril: “Oh, do you plan to participate in the fights, Henry?”

Henry: “...........no, just watching and betting.”

Yeah, even without using magic powers, I do have quite a bit of skill. I’m not trying to look down on the other arena fighters, but I don’t want the fight to look like I’m bullying the weaker fighters.

Cyril: “Is that so…?”

Henry: “In fact, you should go up there. You’ve been training with your staff skills.”

Cyril: “Don’t be ridiculous. Right now, I'm barely able to protect myself.”

We chat as we walk down the hallway that leads to the arena.

As we move forward, a different type of atmosphere begins to tickle our senses as we catch whiffs of a very heated and rowdy audience.

Cyril: “Wo〜w, you can hear the cheers from here.”

Henry: “Yeah, they’re really getting into it today.”

As we approach, a Casino attendance opens the sound proof door.

We are suddenly blasted with the sounds of a cheering crowd.

Cyril: “Whoa〜”

It’s a bowl shaped arena with a square stage in the middle. Most of the seats are filled.

Cyril: “Wow〜, look how big this place is.”

Henry: “Yeah, you’re right. You couldn’t tell from looking at it from the outside, but I wonder how big this site is…”

This arena is smaller than anything you would see at the Capital, but it was still surprisingly big.

Henry: “Okay, let’s look for an open seat somewhere……..” Cyril: “.......Henry?”

Hm? I look towards where Cyril is pointing. Her finger landed on the fighting arena stage.

The previous match just ended, and a woman is currently walking up to the injured on stage.

Henry: “..............Ferris?”

She casts her healing magecraft, and heals all the injuries quickly.

Cyril: “The opponent that won….if I’m not mistaken, that’s Jend, right……”

Henry: “.........you’re right…..”

What are those guys doing?

“Annnnnnnnnnd the match goes to Jend!! He’s strong!! Our newest up-and-coming Adventurer has now won five battles in a row!! How is your fatigue, Jend?! Can you go for another round?!”

Jend: “Yeah, I can keep going. Compared to who I usually go up against, this is too easy.”

“Thank you so much! Now do we have anyone who wants to challenge our hero?!”

The referee shouts into a magecraft item that magnifies your voice, and another arena fighter who was waiting for their turn steps forward into the arena.

………..no really, what is he doing here?

Chapter end